Unnoticed Love
by Songbird1414
Summary: Darry's too busy taking care of everyone else to notice someone cares. What will it take to finally get through to him? (Some of the reviews contain spoiler alerts!)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I do not own any of the characters from The Outsiders. I claim no such brilliance. I own Maggie, her parents, Carla, and Billie.**

 **Warning: Some of the reviews contain spoiler alerts!**

 **I'd love to know what you think! Reviews are welcome :)**

I had lived in the same house in the same neighborhood my entire life. It wasn't a nice house and it wasn't a nice neighborhood. Most of the houses in the area were small and old. Some of them, like the Cade's house next door, were falling into disrepair. Others were just old and we kept them as clean and nice as we could.

We weren't treated very well by people who didn't live on the east side of town. The upper class on the west side would barely look at us unless they wanted to insult us, or worse, and the middle classes just stood by the wayside and watched it all happen like their own private movie or something.

In school, I hadn't fit in anywhere. I never tried out for sports or cheerleading because I knew I wasn't popular enough to get in no matter how good I was, and I kept my skirts a decent enough length and my makeup toned down enough that the girls in my own neighborhood accused me of trying to be better than I was. I wasn't, honestly. I was just trying not to be trashy.

I had a few friends. Carla and her little sister, Evie, hung out with me, and some of the boys from the neighborhood were down-right decent to me, but other than that, I had no one. My father hated me and my mother was too terrified of him and too medicated to do anything about it. So I tried to stay out of the way and keep off of everyone's radar. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't.

You see, I'm not a looker. I wouldn't be even if I used more makeup. I don't think I'm ugly, or anything, I'm just not remarkable. My hair is a mousy brown and somewhere between straight and curly. It's pretty thick and I'd say I can make it look the way I want it to about one day out of ten. I'm short and curvy. I'm not fat, but I'm short enough that two or three extra pounds has no where to hide either. The only thing I have going for me is my hourglass figure.

My face isn't memorable either, really. My teeth are decent and my lips aren't super thin or super thick, but I couldn't help but wish I had big doe eyes, a defined cheekbone, and a delicate chin. I was just sturdy. I don't really remember a time that someone looked twice at me.

When I was a little girl, I used to imagine being swept away from all of this by a prince or a movie star. When I got a little older, I dreamed that someone else would rescue me. The boy down the street.

He's a year older than me, good looking, and solid. I don't just mean physically, although he was built like a rock by the time he was fifteen. He has a good, sensible head on his shoulders and he sizes up a situation in a heartbeat and makes decisions just as quickly. I never remember him second-guessing himself. Not once. He was the only person I knew who could cross the line between the classes, laughing and joking with his fellow football players one minute, then offering me and Two-bit a ride home the next. That's just who Darry Curtis was.

He was such a good football player and so down to earth, that the entire school accepted him. He was the only one I knew in twelve years of school that had managed to do so. It hadn't mattered where he lived or who his hard-working parents were. All that had mattered to anyone was that he was talented, smart, and likable.

But by the time I was fourteen and he was fifteen, I had realized that the idea of him rescuing me was as laughable as any other boy in school deciding to waste their time with me. He was better than me, even if he did just live around the corner, and he would never see me as anything but the neighbor girl he grew up with. So I resigned myself to the lot my life held.

Which was why, at nineteen, I was walking home from working a double at the diner with a sweater wrapped tightly around me and my head ducked against the wind. I was exhausted and I knew I'd have to fix dinner and clean up after it before I'd be able to go to bed, get up, and do it all over again. When the weather was really bad, I usually took the bus, but a nickel one way added up and we needed the money more than I needed a ride.

The old, green truck puttered past me, and I wasn't surprised when it slowed to a stop and Darry stuck his head out the window. "Hey, Mags," he said in a voice that made my stomach flutter. "Want a lift?"

"Sure," I accepted gratefully and hopped into the truck. Its smell was familiar, sweat and cigarettes. "Thank you."

"No problem," Darry said as he pulled away from the curb. He looked as tired as I felt. "Good day?"

I shrugged. "Decent tips," I told him as I pulled a dollar from my apron, folded it, and tucked it into my shoe. Darry didn't ask what I was doing, he already knew.

My dad took every penny I made and drank or gambled most of it away. I hid barely enough to keep the lights on, the water running, and to occasionally pick up a dress that didn't have holes in it at the thrift store. That was my life at nineteen and it would probably be my life at twenty-nine. I withheld a sigh.

"How was your day?" I managed to ask.

"Better now that it's not quite so hot," Darry admitted. He roofed houses for at least as many hours as I waited tables each day, but neither of us could seem to get ahead much.

"You guys need anything?" I asked. When their parents had passed away just over two years ago, right before my senior year, I'd done what I could for them, but for three boys, they were surprisingly self-sufficient. They could do their own laundry and even put together a decent meal, but I knew Darry had been overwhelmed with everything so I had walked a fine line between being helpful and being in the way. As time went on, I'd slowly backed off, but I always made sure they knew that if they needed anything, all any of them had to do was call. And I still dropped off cookies or a loaf of fresh bread every once in a while.

"Nah," Darry shook his head. "You?"

"Nope," I lied. I needed out, but I'd never ask anyone for that kind of help. Not ever. Because I'd never be able to repay it and around here, people were too proud to take charity unless they were down-right starving.

Darry opened his mouth to say something else as he pulled in front of his house, but even over the rumble of the truck, we both heard a muffled cry.

"Darry! Soda!"

Darry leapt out of the truck so fast, he blurred in front of me. "Stay in the truck!" he hollered at me before he took off running.

Soda was already out of the house, his open DX shirt flapping behind him as he ran toward the open lot, Steve right behind him. Two-Bit appeared from behind Mr. Cooper's house, Dally on his heels. Even Johnny was running toward them from the other direction, his hand already on his back pocket.

I got out of the truck. A mustang was parked near the lot, out of place in this neighborhood, and I looked over to see five nice looking, well dressed boys huddled on the ground. That was what was so messed up about the whole situation between the classes. The upper class kids looked decent, like they'd never cause any trouble, and the kids on the east side look like we cause more trouble than we're worth. So they get away with a lot and we get away with nothing. Plain and simple.

It wasn't until Steve and Soda almost reached them that I realized they had someone pinned to the ground. They hurried back to the car when they realized six guys were headed for them, and even though they all made it safely inside, I watched as Dally heaved a few rocks at the trunk. When the car was safely on down the road, the boys turned and headed back toward Darry who was kneeling on the ground next to something, or someone actually. That person sat up and what I already knew was confirmed. Those boys had jumped Ponyboy.

I couldn't hear them, but I could tell that Ponyboy was shaken up. Soda plopped next to him and talked to him for a minute while everyone else stood around and watched. I didn't want to eaves drop, but I also needed to get home.

It hadn't been easy for me to convince Darry to stop at his house when he gave me a ride. I could walk from there and my dad would never know that a guy had offered me a ride. Like I said, I try to keep my head down, and if that means walking half a block from Darry's house to mine, then that's what I did.

So I started toward them since I'd pass the lot on my way home. Ponyboy was on his feet and all seven of them were walking toward me on the opposite side of the street.

"Hi, Maggie," Two-Bit called out sweetly, as though they were all out for a stroll instead of fighting a bunch of boys two seconds ago. Two-Bit was less than a year younger than me, but he was still a junior in high school, not because he couldn't pass, but because he didn't want to.

"Hey, ya'll," I included everyone in my greeting. "Ya'll okay?" I asked. If I included everyone, than hopefully the baby of the group wouldn't feel like I was singling him out.

"Yeah," Steve nodded. "We're all fine."

I nodded and kept walking. "Have a good evening, Maggie," Darry called after me.

"You too," I said, feeling light-hearted and down-trodden at the same time. I'd learned long ago not to read too much into anyone's pleasantries. Nope, the only one who would really look out for me was me.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The next night, it was late when I finally went to bed. Saturdays were extra exhausting because I would work a shift AND try to get caught up on the housework. But the laundry was done and drying, the windows had been cleaned, and everything was dusted and swept. I was thinking about cleaning out the icebox, but I was just too tired so I went to my room.

My room was next to Johnny's house and sometimes it took me a while to go to sleep because his parents were usually fighting. The worst was when I'd hear his dad beating on Johnny, but the kid could take a belting and not let out so much as a whimper. I tried to be that strong, but it didn't usually work.

I heard voices outside and glanced out the window. Johnny, Two-Bit, and Ponyboy were standing outside, laughing like Johnny's parents weren't screaming at each other just inside the house. I sighed and put myself to bed, plopping the pillow over my head in an effort to drown out the noise.

It seemed like I'd just gotten to sleep when I heard the sirens. I glanced at the clock. It was three in the morning. Sirens were common in our neighborhood, and I usually slept through them, but this sounded like every police officer in the city was heading to the neighborhood from all different directions.

I got up and got dressed in a hurry.

"What's going on?" mom mumbled from their bedroom. Dad wasn't home.

"I don't know," I said. "Stay here."

I know I shouldn't have, but I went outside. Mrs. Cade was coming out of their house, wrapping a blanket around her shoulders against the cold and I headed to her house because her house faced the next street. I'd be able to see more from there. Other people were emerging from their houses and we watched as the cop cars headed down the road to the park a few blocks away.

When Darry and Soda stepped out onto their porch, my feet took me toward them before I knew I was walking. They took off running and I knew I'd never catch up so I just walked down the street at three in the morning, following the noise.

When I finally got to the park I stopped behind them. The police were keeping people on the sidewalk and I saw an ambulance near the fountain. Paramedics were zipping someone into a body bag. All I got was a glimpse of madras and curly hair.

"That's not Ponyboy," I heard Soda say, his voice full of relief as they watched the scene before them. My heart fell to the bottom of my toes. Ponyboy wasn't home.

"No," Darry was visibly shaking, I watched as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and forced himself to even out his breathing.

I'd never been scared of Darry, but for some reason, watching him right now, I was. He was terrifying. It took me a moment to pinpoint why, but I realized that Darry looked defeated. He'd never been defeated before, not ever. He suddenly looked older than twenty, like he'd looked older than eighteen when he gave up his scholarship and got a job so that his brothers wouldn't be taken away from him.

The police were taking statements from everyone gawking, but I honestly didn't know anything that would help them so they didn't pester me too long. They questioned Darry and Soda for quite a while, but I realized I couldn't do anything for them there, so I headed back to their house.

Darry never locked the door. Dally didn't really have a place and Steve and Johnny often needed a place to crash when things got too bad at home. I walked right in and headed to the kitchen. I only had to rummage around in the cabinets for a few minutes before I found the percolator and the coffee. It was ready when they walked in.

"Who's here?" Soda asked, tiredly.

"Don't know," Darry said before they came around the corner. I had just managed to pour two cups, adding a little milk to one, the way Darry liked it, and a lot of sugar to the other, the way Soda liked his.

I suddenly felt out of place and helpless. Like an unwanted intruder, and I'd never felt that way around them before. "I just didn't know what to do to help," I finally managed. It sounded pathetic. I set the mugs on the table and headed toward the door. They didn't look like they wanted to talk and it wasn't any of my business anyway.

Darry surprised me by reaching out and touching my arm as I passed them. "Thank you," he said.

I smiled sadly up at him, hiding my heart so he wouldn't see. I'd gotten really good at that. "You're welcome," I said. "Let me know if there's anything else I can do."

He nodded and I patted Soda's shoulder before heading home. Mrs. Cade was still on her porch.

"What happened?" she asked once I was close enough that I could hear her.

"There was some kid dead in the park," I answered. "That's all I know." Her hand leapt to her throat and I knew then for sure that Johnny wasn't home either. "It wasn't Johnny," I said. "He was from the other side of town."

Even in the dim porch-light, I saw relief flood her eyes. I honestly hadn't thought that she gave two wits about her son, but apparently, on some level or another, Mrs. Cade cared. Huh, fancy that.

"Oh, Maggie," she sagged against the doorframe. "What am I going to do with that boy?" she asked. "What do you do when your son doesn't want to be home and he doesn't listen?"

I thought about mentioning the fact that maybe he'd listen if she lowered her voice once in a while, or had something positive to say every now and then. But I knew it wouldn't do any good, so I did the one thing I was good at. I kept my mouth shut.

She sighed again and pulled open the screen door. "Keep me posted, huh, Maggie?" she asked. She probably knew I'd hear the real scoop before she did. But before she could go inside, the cops were at the gate. I headed home as Mrs. Cade invited them in.


	3. Chapter 3

Sleep was a long time coming, and even though I was bone tired the next morning, I dragged myself out of bed because I wanted to go to church. I hurried to the bathroom to make myself presentable, then went to get the morning paper, hoping for more information. Dad's car wasn't back yet which meant that he'd either won some money and then spent the rest of the night losing it all, or he'd passed out somewhere, too drunk to come home. Either way was fine with me.

The story was on the front page of the paper. I unfolded the pages quietly so I wouldn't wake mother. Johnny was wanted for murder. I couldn't believe it. I'd known Johnny his whole life and, yeah he looked tough, but he was sweet and polite. If the newspaper article had said that Dally was wanted for murder, I wouldn't have batted an eye, but Johnny? No, something must have happened to make him desperate enough to knife someone. The other boys involved weren't saying too much, so the cops didn't have much to go on.

Johnny and Ponyboy were missing. Of course they were. People in this neighborhood didn't just sit around and wait for the cops to pick them up. Guilty or no, we got it worse just because we were on the poor side of town. Johnny could've said that it was self-defense, but no one would have listened, even if it was true.

I sighed and headed out the door just as dad pulled in. I kept my head down and hurried to the gate, but his slightly slurred voice stopped me.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked.

"To church," I said firmly.

"Don't you know what happened last night?" Stan asked. "It's not safe for you to be whorin' around now. 'Sides, I'm hungry."

I sighed. "There's oatmeal on the stove," she said. "I'm going to church."

"Yeah, right, church." Dad stumbled toward the door and I left in a hurry.

The nearest church was only five blocks away and my feet took me their almost automatically. Johnny and Ponyboy used to go with me quite often, but they hadn't been back since Soda, Steve, and Two-Bit came with us and embarrassed them. In spite of my fear for the boys, I laughed at the memory of them clowning around in the back pew. It had been a while since they'd gone with me, but I felt their absence more keenly today than I ever had.

On the way back, I stopped at the Curtis', mostly because I wanted to see if I could help, partly because I didn't want to go home. There were several strange cars in the driveway and a few people milling around outside. I debated about whether or not I should step inside the gate, but then I thought that turning away would be too cowardly.

As soon as I opened the gate, five people turned to me.

"Miss!" one hollered. "What's your relationship to the Curtis'?"

"Are you aware of what's happened?" someone else asked. "Do you know where the boys are?"

I kept my head down and hurried up to the porch. Before I could even knock, the door opened and Two-Bit yanked me inside, slamming the door behind me. For the first time in my life, I heard that door lock.

The house was unusually quiet. Steve and Soda were sitting at the table and Two-Bit was in the living room pulling the curtains a little tighter. The TV and radio weren't even on. I almost asked where Darry was before I heard the shower through the bathroom door as I made her way toward the kitchen.

"Come on, buddy," Steve was saying. "Won't you eat something if I fix it?"

Soda shook his head. "I'm not hungry."

Steve looked to me, but I just continued on into the kitchen. I wasn't going to give them the option, I was just going to fix them something to eat. I rummaged through the icebox and found eggs, bread, and half a chocolate cake. Satisfied, I went to the stove and heated the large cast-iron skillet before slipping some butter into the it and watching it melt. I swirled the skillet until the butter had coated the bottom and part of the sides, then I started cracking eggs. I decided to make all twelve since all of the boys would probably eat.

Once the eggs were cooking, I set about putting slices of bread in the toaster, stirring the eggs in between rotating the toast. Once I had eight pieces of toast, the eggs were done and I dumped the lightly scrambled mess into a serving bowl just as Darry came out of the bathroom.

I barely glanced at him as I set the table. I could tell that he was trying to make up his mind between being grateful and mad, and I decided I was just going to keep doing what I was doing and ignore him until he decided how he wanted to play it. I set four plates out and didn't give Soda the option to refuse. I put a heaping portion of eggs, two pieces of toast, and a slice of cake on his plate before setting the grape jelly in front of him. Steve poured him some chocolate milk.

As quiet as the house was, I was afraid of my own voice so I just dished up another plate and motioned Darry to sit down. Steve was already helping himself and Two-Bit sat down as well. Darry sat down and I set a cup of coffee in front of him. He didn't move for a moment.

"You need to eat," I managed to say, trying to keep the frustration out of my voice. I wasn't mad at anyone in the room, I wasn't even mad at Johnny or Ponyboy. I was just mad at life in general, but I didn't need to take it out on Darry. Not when he was already hurting.

"Anyone hear from Dally?" Steve asked.

"Yeah," Two-Bit nodded. "Buck called and said he got hauled in this morning. I figure he'll be around once they finish questioning him."

I left them to their food while I went to clean up the kitchen. It was better than sitting around. Half way through the dishes, there was a soft tap on the back door. I hurried over and found Evie, Sandy, and Kathy on the tiny back porch. I ushered them inside quickly and they wasted no time in heading to the table.

Sandy stood behind Soda and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her cheek to the top of his head. He rubbed her arm as he leaned into her shoulder. Evie, Carla's sister, plopped right into Steve's lap and nuzzled his neck as if the rest of us weren't there. Kathy and Two-Bit must have been "on" this week, because she sat down beside him and wrapped her hand around his before leaning over and kissing his cheek.

I returned to the kitchen quickly, not wanting to gawk at the public displays of affection in front of me. Instead, I plunged my hands into the soapy water and continued on the dishes. Like a ghost, Darry appeared beside me, stacking plates on the counter beside the sink.

"Thank you," he said. "You didn't have to."

"I know," I said without looking up. "If I'd had to, I probably wouldn't have wanted to."

I wanted him to step back, or better yet, leave the room. I was barely holding myself together and his nearness made it even more difficult. I wasn't a mess for myself. Mostly. I was hurting for him because I could tell Darry was barely keeping it together. I'll admit that a small part of me was hurting for myself because watching everyone in the dining room had made me realize just how lonely I was. I shook my head at myself. I was pathetic.

"What?" Darry asked as he scraped bits of food into the trash.

"Nothing," I said, "I was just thinking to myself." He didn't pry and I was glad. "Don't worry about those," I said. "I'll get them."

"I need to be busy," he said and I nodded in understanding. Sitting around was worse.

"Okay," I nodded. "Why don't you start in the living room." He was too close and I had to get some distance, but when he was gone, I was reminded again of how lonely I was. I shook my head again at the realization that I wasn't happy even after I got what I wanted. Sheesh.

I finished the dishes and before I realized it, I'd thoroughly cleaned the outsides of the appliances, cabinets, and countertops. I was sweeping the floor before I realized that Sandy and Soda were cleaning the bathroom and Steve and Evie were cleaning every surface in the dining room, including the window casing and the picture frames on the walls. At this rate, the house would be sparkling before we knew it.

I had become comfortable in my isolation, so instead of joining them, I began cleaning and organizing the insides of the cabinets and drawers. I hoped Darry and Soda could find anything in there once I was done. Then I moved to the icebox and cleaned it out as well. Once that was done, I swept and mopped the floor.

I was putting the mop away when I realized it was after three. My dad was going to kill me! I headed into the living room to say goodbye.

Two-Bit and Kathy were on the couch, but Darry wasn't around. "He's down the hall," Two-Bit said without looking at me.

I nodded and glanced out the door. No one was there and the cars were gone. "Okay," I said. "Tell him I said bye."

"Will do."

I was right. Dad was waiting for me in the living room and I flinched as soon as he jumped to his feet, the door closing loudly behind me.

"Church, huh?"

"I went to church," I said lamely. "I just didn't come straight home."

"I knew you'd be whoring around town," dad said as I slipped past him, trying to get down the hall.

"I wasn't-"

"Don't lie to me!" dad roared. I wasn't surprised when his fist started flying.

 **A/N: I was going to wait a few days to post some more, but my guest reviewer encouraged and excited me so I couldn't wait. Thanks, my mystery reviewer!**


	4. Chapter 4

Half an hour later, I was fixing dinner with a busted lip and a pretty big bruise on my arm where dad had grabbed me. The left side of my face just below my eye was turning purple and it was tender when I touched it. Food and chores were the only things that would ever placate him and since mom didn't lift a finger and dad didn't make her, it was all up to me.

I knew dad liked goulash, so I whipped up a batch as quickly as I could, hoping the fresh bread would go a ways in appeasing him as well. Both worked well enough to keep him off my back for the rest of the day.

The next few days, I just went to work and home. I heard through the grapevine that Johnny and Ponyboy had gone to Texas, but I didn't know what to do to help them or any of the other boys. I didn't want to be a nuisance and I figured if anyone needed me, they'd call. Besides, I hated being around the boys when I was black and blue.

The kid Johnny had knifed had a lot of friends and it wasn't safe on the street. Two-Bit and Dally were taking turns picking me up at the diner and giving me a ride home when because even girls weren't safe. I'd been cat-called and teased since I was nine, but never jumped.

The only thing anyone under twenty-four could talk about was the rumble. They were going to settle things once and for all at the lot on Friday night. I overheard people from both sides at the diner, some talking openly, some looking at me sideways like they were afraid I might hear too much. I hadn't realized so much strategy went into a fist fight.

It was Wednesday when Carla stopped by the diner. I smiled when I saw her, but my expression fell as I saw her face.

"What is it?" My heart was squeezed up so tight I could barely breath.

"Have you talked to Soda?" Carla asked. She actually had tears in her eyes. Carla was almost as tough as Sylvia. I'd never seen her cry.

"Not for a couple of days," I said. "Why?"

"He needs you," was all Carla would tell me. My shift couldn't get over fast enough.

None of the boys came to get me so I took the bus home because the Curtis' house felt like a lifetime away. I remembered to thank the driver, then hurried up the street to their house. I didn't knock, I just went in.

Darry and Soda were sitting at the table, Soda's head was in his hands, Darry's hand was on his shoulder.

Oh no, I thought to myself. What now?

Darry looked up when I came in and he gave Soda a little shake. The younger Curtis lifted his head and stood up as soon he saw me. Before I knew what was happening, he'd closed the gap between us and was bawling on my shoulder.

All I could do was wrap my arms around him and hold him while he cried. I looked over his shoulder at Darry, a question in my eyes, but he just stood in the dining room with his fists jammed in his pockets, staring at the floor.

"Okay," I murmured, trying to convince myself more than anyone. "It's okay, honey."

Soda's arms were around my shoulders and he was almost crushing me as he snotted all over my uniform. I didn't mind either one but I did prefer to keep breathing. I shuffled my feet, pulling him with me and we settled on the couch.

"It's okay," I soothed again, brushing his cheek and patting his shoulder.

I learned what was wrong in muffled, snotty, broken sentences. "She's gone, Mags," Soda sniffed. "Sandy's gone."

I was surprised and my face must've registered it because Darry nodded. "She left for Florida this morning."

Florida! She might as well have moved to the moon. "Why?" I wondered aloud.

Soda shook his head as he sat up. "It's not mine," he said. "I was gonna marry her anyway, but-"

Oh wow. Just wow. She'd cheated on him. I hadn't realized how much Soda had loved Sandy until now. But, I reasoned, it made sense. She'd been there for him when his parents died and they'd been together ever since. Loving was easy for Soda. As easy as hating was for Dallas.

Darry sat down on the other side of him and the three of us sat in silence for almost five minutes before we heard the gate.

"Did you know?" We heard Steve ask as he came toward the house. "Evie! I asked you a question!"

"Of course I knew," Evie's voice was on the porch. "She's my best friend!"

"How could you not tell me?" Steve seethed as they came in.

"Girl code," Evie said simply as she turned to face him. "I didn't like it, and I talked to her about it, but I couldn't tell you!"

They stopped suddenly, like they just realized they were standing in the living room. Evie had tears in her eyes and I realized I'd never seen her cry either.

"I lost my best friend too," she said quietly.

Steve sighed and wrapped his arms around her. "I know," he said. Then they turned to us. "Hey, buddy," Steve sat down on the coffee table right in front of Soda. "What can we do?"

"Nothing," Soda sat back and wiped his eyes. "I'll get over it."

But everyone in the room knew he was kidding himself, at least for a while. So in one week, Soda had lost his brother and the girl he loved. Man, this was lousy.

"What happened to you?" Steve looked me over. The bruise on my cheek was starting to fade, but was far from gone. At least my lip had shrunk back to its normal size.

"Nothing," I shrugged.

Darry looked at me carefully, noticing for the first time. "Your old man?" He asked, his eyes were colder than normal. I nodded. No use in denying it. His eyes narrowed. "Because you were here?" I quickly debated how much good it would do to lie. I shrugged and nodded again.

Darry was mad, but Soda was just sad. "I'm sorry, Maggie," he said. "We didn't mean to get you in trouble."

"You didn't," I said quickly. "I knew what I was doing."

"He shouldn't hit you," Darry stood up quickly.

"No," I agreed. "But Johnny's dad shouldn't beat on him, and we shouldn't have to carry knives just to protect ourselves. A lot of people have it worse than me," I finished lamely. I stood up. "I should go or I'll get in trouble again," I said.

Soda and Steve stood too. I turned to Soda. "You let me know if you need anything, okay?"

He nodded. "Thanks, Mags," he said. "It's nice having you around."

I smiled and patted his cheek before turning for the door. At least one person liked having me around, even just as a friend and comfort. It wasn't much, but it was a nice feeling anyway


	5. Chapter 5

The rest of the week passed in a blur. I worked a double on Thursday and Friday, almost collapsing into bed Friday night when I heard a car door slam down the street. I looked out my bedroom window and saw the green truck streak by faster than Darry should have been driving in the neighborhood so I waited until they were out of sight before throwing on a pair of slacks and heading out into the night. I know, I'm a glutton for punishment, but I couldn't help it and dad was sleeping off a heavy drunk so he'd never know I left.

I let myself into the Curtis' house and realized that it was a little less organized than it had been on Sunday. I hadn't noticed the other night.

I started by picking up the clothes Soda had strewn about the living room and corralling the shoes behind the couch where Darry let him keep them, then I started on the dishes. There weren't that many, maybe only from yesterday and today, but I washed them all, dried them, and put them away before I started the coffee. I had no idea where they'd gone or when they'd be back, but if I had to, I'd throw out the coffee and make a fresh batch. I could always buy Darry more coffee if I needed to.

I startled when I heard the truck pull in and the engine die, but I headed into the dining room anyway. Soda opened the door, sleepy eyed, then stepped back to hold it open while Darry carried in a much changed Ponyboy.

"Oh!" Tears leapt to my eyes as I looked at him. He was covered in black soot and his beautiful hair was cut and bleached, making him look even younger than he had a few days ago.

"He's alright," Darry said quickly. "Just asleep."

I stood between the living room and dining room as Darry carried Ponyboy down the hall to bed.

"You okay?" I asked Soda. He was still in the living room.

"Yeah," he said. "Just beat." He took off down the hall and didn't come back. A few minutes later I heard his soft snore just as Darry came out of their room and closed the door quietly behind him.

"Coffee?" I asked as he came down the hall.

"Yes, please," he said. I led the way to the dining room and headed into the kitchen to pour two cups, adding milk to both.

We sat and sipped quietly for a moment before I spoke up. "He's okay?"

Darry nodded. "For now," he said. "I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, but he's safe."

"What happened?" I asked.

Darry told me the whole story. Of course, I wasn't surprised that Dally had known where the boys were all along, but I was surprised that he'd helped them save those little kids.

"They're heroes," I said. "All of them."

"Well, let's hope it helps in their other case," Darry wiped a hand over his face.

"How are they?" I asked.

Darry shook his head. "Johnny's pretty banged up I guess," he said. "He has some pretty severe burns, but Dally's gonna be fine in a few days."

That didn't surprise me. Dally would always be fine.

What did surprise me was my next question. "What about you?" I asked.

Darry looked up at me in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"Are you okay?" I asked.

Darry stared at his half-drunk coffee so long I thought he wasn't going to answer. "Not really," he admitted, surprising me even further. "But I will be once this mess is behind us. As long as they let us stay together."

I hadn't thought of that. I'd thought that if Ponyboy came home, he'd just be home. I did the only thing I could think to do. I reached across the table and placed my hand comfortingly on his arm. I couldn't think of anything to say.

"What about you?" Darry asked me. This night was full of surprises. "You okay?" He nodded toward the bruise on my cheek. "I just hate seeing you like that," he said. "You and Johnny both."

I shrugged. "I'm okay," I said. "I know what makes him mad and I chose to be here anyway."

"Why?" He studied his coffee again.

Because it's so much nicer here than at home. Because I want to help. Because I care about your brothers. Because I love you. I had so many different answers to that question, but I didn't say any of them.

"You're my friends," I said lamely. "You do what you can for your friends." I shrugged. "Besides, you help me out quite a bit."

It was true. Darry had done everything from helping me with plumbing to fixing a leak in the roof and ceiling.

He smiled and my heart skipped a beat. I was reminded again about how rarely he smiled these days. "Yeah," he admitted. "But no one's going to beat the snot out of me for helping you."

I smiled a sad smile before I stood up and reached for the coffee cups automatically. "You don't have to do that," he suddenly sounded tired.

"I know," I said as I headed into the kitchen. His tiredness made him sound vulnerable and that made me vulnerable too. I knew that if I looked at him, he'd know how I felt and I couldn't risk our friendship, especially now. He was the only thing I had to look forward to every day.

I hadn't heard him get up, so his voice right behind me made me jump slightly. "You know you deserve better, right?" He asked.

I sighed and turned off the water. "Well, it doesn't really matter what I deserve, does it?" I asked. "This is what I got and I don't see it changing any time soon." I was so close to tears I was terrified to turn around. "You can go to bed," I told him. "I'll let myself out."

I could feel his nearness and his eyes on me but I couldn't look up at him. Finally, he turned and headed toward the hall. "Goodnight, Maggie," he said. I couldn't quite tell if there was anything he wasn't saying.

I heard his door click closed and I hurried with the dishes, drying the mugs and percolator before putting them all away. I let myself out and walked home in the quiet.


	6. Chapter 6

I made it to the hospital after work the next day, but they told me Johnny couldn't see anyone so I only got to see Dally. He seemed happy to see me.

"Hey, Mags," he said brightly when I walked in. "Didn't I tell you to stop hitting your dad's fist with your face?" He asked. Leave it to Dally to say something like that.

"Sorry, Dally," I said lamely. "I forgot."

He laughed. "How you been?"

"The same," I told him. "How are you?" I motioned toward the hospital bed he was laying on.

He shrugged. "I'd be better if I weren't here," he said.

"Are you going to get in trouble for knowing where the boys were all along?" I asked.

He smiled innocently at me. "Who knew?" He asked. "I was just out for a drive and saw the fire. It was a coincidence that I was there."

I didn't think I could laugh about the situation, but that did it. "Come on, Dally," I said once I'd sobered a little, but he just grinned at me.

I didn't stay too long. When it was just the two of us, Dally and I usually ran out of things to talk about pretty quickly. Besides, I needed to get home before dark. I could hear Darry's warning in my head as I went inside the house.

"Lock your doors and stay inside until morning," he'd told me this morning. "Don't come out for any reason, you got that?" I'd nodded, mostly because he had given me that stern look he used on Soda and Ponyboy when he meant business. I was scared enough that I probably would have obeyed anyway.

So I locked the door and made sure the back door was locked too before pulling the shades and heading into the kitchen to start supper. The only good thing about the weekend was that dad was never home. He had a paycheck to blow. I fixed egg sandwiches for my oblivious mother and myself.

Mom had gone back to bed and I'd just finished the supper dishes when I heard them. A few cars were coming slowly down the street and turned onto the next street. I peeked out of the curtains and saw them. Rough boys, tougher than the kids in our neighborhood, were merging on the lot. I recognized Tim Shepherd and a couple of others, but these boys looked like they didn't fight fair and they didn't care. A couple of them built up a pretty good bonfire while the rest stood around, looking as casual as if they were headed to the movies.

I couldn't see the boys from our neighborhood yet, but I didn't have to wait long. Less than two minutes later, they crossed the street in front of me and headed to the lot. It was only a few more minutes before four sharp cars pulled up from the other direction. I tried counting heads as they headed toward the lot, but the socs were milling about too much as they made their way to the lot. Several of them were well past being drunk and I found myself hoping that they didn't hold their liquor as well as Two-Bit.

I was surprised to see Darry step forward under the streetlight. I hadn't thought he'd be the one to start things off. A fairly big guy stepped toward him and after a few words I couldn't hear, they began circling each other. It wasn't until Darry's back was to me that I realized I knew the other guy. Paul Holden was a junior at Oklahoma State now but he and Darry had been on the football team together. I know they were pretty far away, and I was looking at them through a window catty-corner and down the block a little, but I was sure it was him. I felt my throat tighten as they continued to size each other up.

I was suddenly furious. I was watching two grown men, they weren't boys anymore, fight just because one had more opportunity than the other. Darry should have been at home, maybe cleaning up after supper, and Paul should have been working on a term paper or something. They shouldn't be fighting just because they were different. It was one thing for high school kids to get into scrapes, but the absurdity of what I was watching made me angry.

Then something distracted Darry for half a second and Paul's fist connected with his jaw. I winced, but Darry didn't go down and suddenly, it was a free-for-all. It had been like watching a silent movie, but all of a sudden, I could hear them yelling at each other like cavemen. The sound was horrible and I wanted to look away but I couldn't.

The rain began pouring in buckets and between that and the darkening night, I lost track of who was who; but I kept watching. The whole thing lasted a lot longer than I thought it would, many of the boys kept fighting long after they were hurt enough that they should have stopped, but after what felt like an eternity, people were running away. It took me a moment to realize what was happening but the socs were running for their cars, some helping others limp along. Screams of victory erupted from the lot but I didn't feel like celebrating. I'd never seen a fight like that and I realized I was more afraid than I ever had been in my life.

The celebration didn't last too long. Boys started breaking off, some of them piling into cars and taking off, others strutting or limping down the streets. I don't know how long I stood at the window facing the now empty streets, but finally, I turned away and it wasn't until I brushed my cheek with my hand that I realized I was crying.

I tried catching up on some housework but I was distracted. I wanted to go up the street, but I didn't feel like getting lectured about staying inside. Finally, I'd convinced myself to go to bed when a blood-curdling scream split the night. It was coming from next door.

I knew I'd said I'd stay in, but I was flying out the door before I even realized it. I hurried through the Cade's gate and was on their porch in a flash. I didn't even knock, I just let myself in.

"Mrs. Cade?" I asked.

She was in a pile on the floor, her housecoat bunched up underneath her, the phone hanging from the cord next to her. She was sobbing gut-wrenching, heart-breaking sobs and Mr. Cade was just standing by the arm chair, and for the first time in my life, I thought Johnny looked like his dad. It took me a moment to pinpoint why, but I realized Mr. Cade was wearing the same whipped puppy look that Johnny wore every day.

And I knew. Johnny was gone.

I hurried inside and closed the door behind me. The only thing I could do was kneel beside Mrs. Cade and take her into my arms. I cradled her, rocking back and forth, as she wailed, washing me in the overwhelming stench of booze.

I was still at their house half an hour later when we heard the sirens and I hurried to the window. Four cop cars were blazing down the street, following a figure running like his life depended on it.

My heart leapt to my throat as I watched Dally streak by the house and the cop cars screeched to a halt around the lot. Dally was under the streetlight when they surrounded him. He pulled something from his waistband and then the gunshots rang through the night, sounding like they were right outside the window.

Dally was flung backwards onto the ground and then someone was screaming. I didn't realize it was me until Mr. Cade was shaking me.

"Get ahold of yourself, girl!" He said. He'd been standing right beside me and had seen what had happened. I vaguely wondered how he was so calm, but I remembered he'd been in Korea, he'd just lost his son, and he'd probably had too much to drink tonight. Dally's going down probably wasn't even a surprise to him.

I was so scared that I disobeyed Darry again. I left the Cades sitting in their living room and ran down the porch steps and through the gate automatically. My feet felt heavy, but they took me straight across the street and down the adjoining sidewalk.

The road was full of cop cars and even the alley behind the lot. Darry, Soda, Steve, Two-Bit, and Ponyboy were standing over Dally's body by the time I got there and the cops were just standing around.

I reached my boys just as Two-Bit said, "Glory, look at the kid." And Ponyboy fell to the ground.

My heart leapt into my throat as I thought that Ponyboy had been shot too. I looked down and saw Dally at our feet, blood pouring out of him, and a satisfied smile on his face.

"Oh no," I whimpered even though I'd already known. My voice sounded funny to me. I knew there was nothing I could do for him now, so I focused on what I could do. I rushed to Ponyboy's side and knelt beside Darry. Soda was hovering right behind us.

"He's alright," Darry said quickly. He looked like he'd aged ten years since Paul first hit him just a few hours ago. "He's just running a fever."

The cops didn't detain any of us and we all headed to the Curtis', Darry carrying the youngest Curtis once again. Soda and Darry were going to take him to the hospital so I promised to stay for a bit and make sure the other two were okay. I really wanted someone to stick around and take care of me, but I was used to not having that.

Once the three of us were inside, I realized that Steve's ribs were taped up and I hurried into the kitchen to get some ice. I chipped a little off the block and wrapped it in a towel before returning to the living room. When they looked at me, I realized I was crying again.

I couldn't tell you why I was crying. Relief that Ponyboy hadn't been shot, maybe. Grief that Johnny had died before he'd had a chance to live, maybe that too. The fact that Dally had died before my very eyes? Definitely that.

Steve took the ice gingerly. "Johnny's dead," he said quietly, his battered face like stone.

"I know," I said. "I came from his house." I pulled him toward the couch. "You should lie down." He didn't argue.

"Dallas is dead," he said.

"I know," I nodded. "I saw."

He nodded. "Stupid idiot," he mumbled. "Why did he want an audience?" His eyes were stormy. "Why did he make us watch?"

Oh how awful. So much loss in one night. I realized that their victory in the rumble meant nothing now. Things would go back to the way they had been, maybe even worse, because the greasers would blame the socs for both Johnny and Dally's deaths, just like every soc had blamed every greaser for Bob's death.

It would never stop, I realized. It didn't matter who won a fight or who didn't. We lived on the east side of town and they lived on the west. When we all grew up, our kids could very well hate each other just as violently. It was all the same. Except for the loss. Now everything was still the same, but they'd never be the same again.

I went to Johnny's funeral on Wednesday. It wasn't much, just his parents and a few other people. Steve, Two-Bit, and Soda were there, along with Carla, Evie, Sylvia, and Kathy. Darry had stayed with Ponyboy, who was home now, but still pretty sick.

I offered to stay with Ponyboy so that Darry could go to Dallas' funeral the next day. I hated for him to miss them both. At first I thought he was going to decline but Soda and I talked him into it. People had cried at Johnny's funeral but I doubted anyone would at Dally's. Well, maybe Soda.

Ponyboy had been delirious and talked in his sleep for three days. He called out for his parents and his brothers a lot and no matter what anyone tried to feed him, he just said he didn't like baloney and refused. When we'd tried to get him to drink anything, he'd just said, "The water at the pump tastes funny." I hadn't understand what he meant, but I didn't argue.

But now, he was awake and alert and didn't want to stay in bed even though the doctor ordered him to. Keeping him there was a full time job. I let him get up twice, once to go to the bathroom and once to sit out on the porch long enough to smoke a cigarette. Darry didn't want him smoking in bed.

We picked at our lunches, but knowing where everyone was made it difficult to concentrate on anything. We wound up playing go fish for almost two hours straight but I couldn't have told you who won.

And I knew the nightmare wasn't over. The court date was looming over their heads like a strict teacher, just waiting for them to make a wrong move. Dad was furious about it, but Mrs. Matthews and I had been called on to testify about Darry's character. I was nervous, but more than willing.

It wasn't as bad as I'd been afraid it would be though. There wasn't any press inside the courtroom and the only people besides the judge, bailiff, and guards were the people involved and their parents. Two-Bit and a couple of classy looking girls testified about the events that led up to the fight in the park, and there were a few well dressed boys who talked about the knifing.

I'd had to go back to work before the trial was over, but I found out soon enough that the judge had acquitted Ponyboy of all charges and placed him in Darry's care.

I knew because they stopped by the diner for celebratory milk-shakes before heading home.

 **A/N: I didn't realize how long this chapter was until I went to post it. Sorry! I even edited several paragraphs out!**


	7. Chapter 7

A new normal settled around the neighborhood. Johnny's parents didn't fight as much but I could hear his mom crying sometimes after I'd gone to bed. My home life didn't change, but I hadn't expected it to. I just repeated the same actions every day, going to work, cooking and cleaning at home, and stashing away a little money here and there to try to keep up with the bills and add to my emergency fund every once in a while. The cycle was even more exhausting than it used to be, maybe because I had no idea that it was all about to change.

I was almost home one Thursday, the late winter wind whipping my hair across my face, when I looked up and saw them. Three hoodlums I didn't recognize were walking straight toward me. I bent my head a little lower and just kept walking.

"Hey, sweetie-pie," one of them said as I passed them. They turned and followed me down the street, saying all sorts of horribly embarrassing things about me. I was so close to home I could almost reach out and touch dad's car in the driveway when one of the boys tugged on my skirt, asking for some action. He didn't even beat around the bush.

I whipped around and before I knew what I was doing, I'd slapped him across the face. He looked as surprised as I was before his eyes narrowed and a small smile played at the corner of his mouth. He reached out to grab me just as I heard the truck.

"Hey!" a voice shouted and the truck door slammed. Before I realized what was happening, Darry was between us. "Ya'll are in Shepherd's outfit, right?"

"Yeah," one of the boys slouched and hitched his thumbs in his pockets. "What's it to ya?"

"Just tell him Curtis said he needs to remind ya'll how to treat decent ladies" Darry said. I couldn't see his face but I could tell he was furious. They backed up a few paces. "And if I find out you didn't tell him I said hi, I'm gonna be real mad."

For a moment, I thought they weren't going to back down, but they turned and walked away, muttering to themselves, and Darry finally turned and faced me. "You alright?"

"Yeah," I nodded, clasping my hands together to keep them from shaking. "Thank you."

We both turned when we heard a door slam. My father was on the porch overturning one of my dresser drawers, the contents scattering across the tiny yard.

"Dad!" I hollered, my voice full of panic. I ran forward. "What are you doing?"

"Mr. Wheeler!" Darry was right beside me.

"I'm tired of your whoring around, girl!" Dad tossed the dresser drawer on the porch like it was a newspaper. "Get the rest of your things and get out!"

I stopped in front of the porch steps. "Dad! Don't do this! I didn't-"

His hand came up and I flinched automatically, but I heard a fist connect with a face and neither one was mine. When I opened my eyes and looked back up, Darry was standing in front of me and my dad was sitting on the porch holding his jaw.

"Your daughter is one of the most decent people I know, Mr. Wheeler," he said calmly. "You don't deserve her."

Dad stood up, seething. "Yeah? Well, she's your problem now, pal." He straightened his shirt. "Marry her or don't, I don't care, but get her stuff and get off my property."

And that's how we ended up at the courthouse, shaky hand in shaky hand. But I'm ahead of myself.


	8. Chapter 8

Darry and I quickly collected my things, just a few dresses, skirts, a pair of pants, blouses, a nightgown, two work uniforms, and one extra pair of shoes. I made sure to grab my underthings and stash them under a skirt in my arms so I wouldn't be flashing them all around the neighborhood or worse, in front of Darry. I also made sure I had the sock with the money in it and we climbed into the truck for the short drive to his house without saying goodbye to either of my parents.

I'd known that it had taken several months for Darry to move into his parents' room, but the boys had been excited about the prospect of having their own rooms so they'd talked him into it. Soda had moved into Darry's old room, the smallest bedroom, hoping that the familiarity of the same room would help Ponyboy adjust more easily. When Ponyboy's nightmares started, Soda moved back in with him and the small bedroom went unused again. That where we stashed my few possessions. After that, I didn't know what to do so I started supper.

"Hey, Maggie," Ponyboy walked into the kitchen. "You staying for supper?"

I swallowed back tears, "Yeah, I am," I said with a plastic smile. If he noticed, he didn't comment.

Darry came around the corner from his shower. "You know you can stay, right?"

"I know," I said, but we both knew I couldn't. Not for very long. My reputation would be ruined by morning so I made up my mind. "I'll stay the night and then figure something out tomorrow."

I couldn't look at him so I just concentrated on stirring the hash I'd thrown together. His hand on my arm made me jump. When I turned, my eyes were staring at his chest. He was so close. "I'm sorry," he said.

I opened my mouth to say something, but felt my chin tremble instead and the next thing I knew, I was in his arms crying into his shoulder. Even in my distress, I realized that I finally knew what it was like to be in Darry's arms. All circumstances aside, it was heaven.

I lost track of time and when we finally pulled apart, two faces were staring at us from the doorway of the living room. "Hey, Maggie," Soda said as if I hadn't just made a fool of myself.

"Hey," I nodded and wiped my nose on my sleeve. "You hungry?"

After supper, Darry and I sat in the living room and discussed my options, but we both knew I didn't have any. I didn't have any family close by, and everyone was struggling to make ends meet as it was. As I readied for bed, I resigned myself to the women's shelter. That night, the only crying that kept me awake was my own.

The next morning, I realized it was a fight to get a shower in this house. With three guys hogging the hot water, I barely got a lukewarm shower in time to get to work. Darry had gotten up before me and breakfast was ready when I got out of the shower. Two-Bit and Steve had materialized from somewhere and if they had any comments about the fact that I was there, they saved it for when I was gone.

"You ready?" Darry looked at me and I nodded. He, Soda, and I piled into the truck to go to work while Ponyboy, Steve, and Two-Bit got in Steve's car to go to school.

We were pretty silent in the truck, but the familiarity was comforting and I realized I'd even miss the old truck. Every time I climbed inside, I felt safe. I tried to keep my melancholy from completely taking over, but sitting in the truck between two of my favorite people, it was hard.

Soda must've caught on because he pinched my cheek when we rolled up to the DX. "You're gonna be alright, Mags," he said. "We'll make sure of it." He hopped out and headed inside.

I wish I had his optimism. I sighed as we pulled back onto the street and continued silently down the road. Darry drove right past the diner and I opened my mouth to remind Darry that I needed to go to work, but Darry spoke first.

"Mags, will you marry me?" It wasn't exactly the proposal of my dreams. Darry was looking at the road and I'm sure I was looking at him like he'd grown a second head or something.

"What?" I was surprised at my anger. "Darrell Shaynne Curis, Junior, if you're offering to marry me because you feel sorry for me-"

"I'm not," he was so calm it was scary. "Not entirely." Well at least he was honest. He pulled over and turned toward me. "Do I feel responsible for what happened?" he nodded. "Yeah."

"It's not your fault, you know," I said. "You didn't pull on my skirt and say all those inappropriate things." I felt my cheeks warm at the memory.

One corner of his mouth lifted in a smile, "But I did deck your dad."

I actually laughed. "Yeah, you did," I said.

He grew serious. "What would you do if you didn't marry me?" he asked. I didn't want to tell him so I kept my mouth shut. "Maggie?" He persisted.

I sighed. "I'm going to go to the shelter after work," I admitted.

"No way," he said with determination as he pulled back onto the road. "Maggie, you're my friend and you've done a lot for me and my brothers. I won't let you do that."

"Darry-"

Now he was mad. "Honestly, Maggie, I don't know if I love you or not, but I do know that I don't want to lose you," his grip on the steering wheel was so tight I was surprised he didn't rip it right off. "You deserve better than the shelter so I'm going to ask you one more time. Will you marry me?"

"Because I'm your friend and you don't want to lose me?" I asked. He nodded, staring ahead. I guess there were worse reasons to get married. "Not because you feel sorry for me or feel like you have to protect my reputation?" I despised pity from anyone. He shook his head. I weighed my options and knew this was definitely the better of the two. I sighed. "Okay," I nodded, crossing my arms over my chest and staring out the window. I was a lot less happy about it than I'd always imagined I would be.

So we went to the courthouse and stood there in front of a judge, Darry in his work shirt and jeans and me in my tan diner uniform. Really romantic, right? The judge took us through the basics, to have and to hold, blah blah. Darry surprised me by slipping a gold band over my finger and when I glanced at it, I realized it was his mother's. So he'd thought about this ahead of time, I realized, staring up at him in surprise.

I hadn't even thought about the fact that at the end, Judge Andrews would say, "you may now kiss the bride," and when he did, panic welled up inside of me as Darry looked down at me.

For a minute, I thought he wasn't going to kiss me at all, but then he bent toward me. I tilted my head back automatically, and his lips brushed against mine in a sweet, almost feather-light kiss. And that was that. Almost before I realized it, I was Mrs. Curtis.

And then the real romance began. We both went to work. Darry had missed too much a few months ago and I knew I'd be in hot water for missing the first two hours of my shift without notice. I wasn't sure where I stood in this marriage so I didn't kiss Darry as he dropped me off. I just said a lame thank you and got out.

"Where have you been?" Brenda, one of the other servers hissed at me as I clocked in and stashed my coat. "Billie's furious!"

Billie owned the place. He wasn't a bad guy and he wasn't a bad cook either, he just demanded hard work and punctuality. I found him in the back.

"Hey Billie," I wasn't nearly as afraid of him as I was my dad. "I'm sorry I'm late." He opened his mouth but my patience was wearing thin. I cut him off before he could say anything. "My dad kicked me out last night so this morning I went and married one of the only friends I have." I held up my hand to show off my simple ring. "I'll work over tonight to make it up to you."

Billie was so shocked, he closed his mouth. "You okay?" he asked.

Again, the last thing I wanted was pity from anyone, and I sometimes had a hard time differentiating between that and genuine concern. "I am now," I nodded quickly, steeling my features. "Thanks." And I headed to my tables like it was any other day. But it wasn't any other day and I knew it.

I wasn't sure what to do at the end of my shift. We hadn't talked about it, but I knew Darry well enough to know he wouldn't be happy about me walking home so I assumed he'd pick me up. I was right. I stayed busy until he stepped inside, then I grabbed my things in a hurry and headed toward him, almost afraid of making him wait. He held the door open for me which shouldn't have surprised me. He'd always done that, even when we were kids.

The drive home was silent, but this time the silence was uncomfortable. We'd never been awkward around each other, but all of a sudden, neither of us had anything to say. I didn't even ask him about his day. I wondered if marrying Darry hadn't ruined everything.

We went inside and discovered that not only did we not know what to say, we didn't know what to do either. There might as well have been eggshells scattered all across the floor and we were both afraid of breaking them. It was kind of funny because I'd been at this house almost as much as I had my own, even before Mr. and Mrs. Curtis passed away. Darry and I had worked together to cook and clean and it had never been weird. I hadn't needed any boundaries beyond the obvious "don't go into the bathroom if the door is closed". Now, I didn't know my place.

We stood together in the living room and I'm sure that if someone didn't know better they'd have thought we'd just met. It was that awkward. Fortunately, Ponyboy came down the hall.

"Hey," he said brightly. "What's for supper?" He stopped and stared at us for a moment and I watched as dread slowly overcame his features. "Mags?" he asked quietly. "Are you- are you going away?"

Ponyboy's fear broke the tension in the room and scattered the eggshells away. "Nope," I shook my head.

Darry went over and wrapped his arm around his brother. "She's stayin', kiddo," he said. "It'll take a little while for all of us to get used to it, but she's stayin'." He looked over at me and smiled and I found myself smiling back. As messed up as it was, I finally had a home. I wasn't sure of my place in it yet, but it was home. And it felt like it.

I started supper while Darry took a quick shower and Steve and Soda arrived before I was finished. They came into the kitchen and Soda poured himself a big glass of chocolate milk while Steve grabbed a Pepsi.

"Hi, Mags," they both said easily enough. Neither of them looked directly at me and I acknowledged their presence without looking up from the stove. Ponyboy came in and pulled himself up to sit on the counter by the sink.

"How was school and work?" I asked them while I stirred the chili.

"Fine," they said together.

I turned around. The left side of Soda's face was swollen and turning purple from his temple to his mouth. Steve's lip was swollen and his left eye was in the process of bruising. "Did you get into a fight?" I asked quickly. I went to the icebox and broke off two pieces of the ice block before wrapping them in towels and handing them each one.

Soda gingerly pressed the towel to his cheek. "Yeah," he said.

"What do the other guys look like?" I asked. They just grinned and I knew the'd won, but that didn't make me feel much better.

Darry came around the corner. "What happened?" he asked, concern crossing his features.

The boys exchanged another glance and I had to remind myself that I was only two years older than Steve. "We just heard some stuff," Steve scuffed his shoe across the floor.

"What stuff?" Darry asked.

When neither of them answered, I knew. "About me?" I asked. Ponyboy's dread was sweeping itself across my heart. Soda nodded and I pursed my lips. "From who?"

"Everyone," Steve mumbled. "At school and at work."

"What'd they say?" I asked.

"I told 'em you slept in the spare room," Soda said quickly. "Honest! I tried to stop it!"

So it was happening, I realized. The label I'd worked so hard to keep off of me, the one that only my own father had believed I should be branded with, was now mine whether I deserved it or not.

"Soda," I reached out and touched his shoulder. "It's okay. Thank you for sticking up for me." I smiled. "But you didn't have to get into a fist fight over it."

He grinned. "Yeah, I did," he argued. "That's what friends do."

"'Sides," Steve set the now empty Pepsi bottle in the sink, "if you'd heard what Carl Jenkins said you'd know we had to fight him and his buddies."

"Well, you won't have to anymore," I said, hoping it was true. It probably was. No one was interested in a married woman's reputation unless she stepped out on her husband. I'd be old news by the end of the week.

"Why not?" Soda asked.

"Maggie, you're not leaving, are you?" Steve asked. His brow furrowed.

"Nope," Ponyboy said with a grin. "She's staying for good."

Steve and Soda took turns looking at me and then Darry. I knew they'd connect the dots better than Ponyboy had.

"Wait," Steve pointed his finger at us. "You didn't…"

Soda grabbed my hand and looked at the ring. "They did!" His smile was ecstatic. "You got married!"

"Wait, what?" Ponyboy jumped off the counter. "You got married?"

"This morning," Darry nodded.

"Oh, man, I wish you could've waited for us," Soda's smile fell. "But I get it." The next thing I knew, he'd trapped me in a bear hug and before I could even catch my breath, Ponyboy and Steve were huddled around us too. Arms and elbows were everywhere, but it was the best feeling in the world.

In that moment, I realized part of the reason that Darry had married me. He didn't want the boys to lose someone else. They'd had enough of that. My heart sighed. He was always thinking of them before himself. Even if he'd been madly in love with me, he wouldn't have married me if the boys didn't like me and that was that. I was suddenly grateful that they liked me.

The boys let off of me and I realized I was crying. "Steve, you stayin' for supper?" I asked as casually as I could, turning back to the chili.

That got me a laugh from all of them. "Yeah," he said. "Thanks."


	9. Chapter 9

After dinner, Ponyboy went to work on homework and Steve and Soda turned on the TV. Darry surprised me by opening a beer before shrugging on his coat and helping me into mine. He pulled me onto the back porch and we sat down on the old bench that leaned against the house. It was cold, but private.

"I just thought we should talk," Darry said.

"Okay," I hugged my coat around me.

"I just want us to be okay," he explained. "I don't want things to be weird."

"They won't be," I lied. They already were.

He looked at me. "I guess I just don't know where we go from here," he said bluntly. "It's just..." he stopped so I finished his thought.

"We're not in love," I lied again. Well, a partial lie, I guess. One of us was and the other wasn't.

"Honestly, Mags, I don't know how I feel." He said it again. "It's been a long time since I even let myself worry about my personal life."

I knew that. "Yeah," I nodded.

"But when I thought of you leaving," he stopped and looked at me. He really looked at me and I felt hope stir in my heart for the first time that day. "I need you, Maggie." He took my hand. "You help me stay strong."

I helped him? Darry was always so sure of himself, so confident. And he needed me? I would have laughed at the idea if he hadn't been so serious.

"I can't really picture my life without you," I surprised myself by admitting. "But I'm not sure what all this means for us."

"Me either," he leaned forward and braced his elbows on his knees. "I just know that that ring on your finger and the piece of paper that goes with it are sacred to me. Regardless of the circumstances, we're married. I promise you I won't step out on you." So we'd respect each other. I knew of marriages that had been built on less than that.

"I won't step out on you either," I said truthfully, almost laughing at the idea. Girls fawned over Darry almost as much as they did Sodapop and the most attention I'd ever gotten was from the three hoodlums the day before.

"I don't-" he stopped and looked out across the tiny backyard. "I don't expect you to share my bed," he said quietly. "At least not right now. Not like this."

I have to admit, I was relieved. The certificate I'd signed this morning basically gave Darry the right to bed me whenever he felt like it without any say from me. I mean, yeah, I was about as in love with him as a person could get, and I'd imagined him literally sweeping me off my feet and carrying me to bed the way Rhett Butler did with Scarlet, but I also desperately wanted him to love and want me to.

I managed a nod in spite of my blush. "Thank you," I said.

He was still holding my hand and I vaguely wondered if he was even aware of it. "I wouldn't have married you if I hadn't really thought we could make this work," he said and I believed him. He was nursing his beer and I had a feeling he wouldn't finish it because we both had work in the morning. It suddenly occurred to me that I'd never seen him drunk and I thought maybe I didn't want to.

I nodded. "Maybe if we just keep things the way they've been for a while," I suggested. "We do make a pretty good team." He actually smiled before slowly nodding.

We were quiet for a moment before he spoke up again. "And listen, this is your home now, so you run it the way you see fit. I want us to help with the cleaning and laundry and such, but don't feel like you have to ask for permission before you go rearranging things or buy groceries or anything."

"Oh! That reminds me!" I jumped up and hurried inside. I ran to the spare room, which I guess was my room now, grabbed the sock of money, and headed back outside. "Here," I handed it over.

"What's this?" Darry asked.

"Almost sixty dollars," I said proudly. I'd been saving up since my sophomore year. "If this is my home now, I'm going to do my part."

He was so quiet and still that for a moment, I thought he was going to refuse. "You don't have to give this to me," he said finally, staring at something in the yard and I realized I'd bruised his pride. He was better at taking care of people than being taken care of.

"I know," I said quickly. "I want to. Darry, I want to help you. You let Soda help out, let me help too."

He didn't move so I took a deep breath for courage, sat down next to him, and took his hand. "You've done so much for me, please let me help you." I appealed to his practical side. "Besides, we _are_ married so pooling our resources is part of the deal."

He tossed the sock lightly, catching it easily. "You're sure?" he asked.

I nodded. "Absolutely," I said. "I won't even hide any in my shoe."

He managed a chuckle. "Alright," he said. "But if you need something, speak up, alright? I don't want you going without because you're afraid to ask."

I nodded again. "Okay," I said. It wasn't a complete lie. I might ask once in a while if I was desperate. I stood up. "I'm gonna clean up the kitchen and go to bed," I said.

"Okay," he said. I opened the door. "Hey, Mags," I turned back toward him. "With three incomes, you don't have to work doubles anymore."

I smiled at him. "I'll quit working doubles when you do," I said. And I left him on the porch with his beer and his thoughts.


	10. Chapter 10

Before the weekend was over we'd settled into a routine and Ponyboy even joined me for church on Sunday. When we got back, I realized that Darry had put a roast in the oven and my mouth was watering as soon as we walked in. I was whipping up some biscuits and Darry was stirring the green beans when there was a knock on the door. I followed Darry into the living room, Ponyboy close behind.

We were surprised to find Tim Shepherd standing on the porch with three familiar faces behind him. At least I thought they were the same punks who had tormented me on Thursday, but it was hard to tell. All three of them were black and blue and they were staring at my shoes.

"Hello, Shepherd," Darry said as though this sort of thing happened all the time.

"Curtis," Tim gave Darry a respectful nod. "Mrs. Curtis," he nodded to me. That sounded weird when someone said it out loud I thought. So word had gotten around. "We don't need to come in, my boys just have something they'd like to say to you," he stepped out of the way and when no one spoke up right away, he cleared his throat strongly.

"Mrs. Curtis," the boy in the middle spoke up. He had his hands stuffed in his leather jacket and he wouldn't look up at me. "We're very sorry for the disrespectful way we treated you the other day," he said. "We had no right to say those things to you."

"Yeah," another said. "We're real sorry."

"Real sorry," the third one said.

The apology was almost laughable. Like children being scolded by their parents, these boys were only standing here because Tim had pummeled them and would do so again if they didn't apologize. They weren't really sorry, they were just afraid of him.

But, I reasoned, like parents teaching their children, if this gave them more respect for girls in the future, maybe I could at least accept their apology. Forgive them? Maybe not.

"Thank you," I said. "I appreciate your effort to come and apologize." It was the best I could do but they were apparently satisfied.

Tim jerked his head toward the sidewalk and the boys wasted no time in jumping off the porch and heading that way. "Thanks, Tim," Darry stuck out his hand. "We appreciate it."

"No problem," Tim said, returning the handshake. He nodded to me, "Ma'am, I hope you have a very pleasant day." And he turned and headed down the walk to the street, his pace equal to a leisurely stroll.

Darry and I barely contained our laughter until we got in the house. I was really beginning to believe that I'd be okay.

And for the most part, I was. We had a routine. Darry didn't like the idea of feeling totally waited on so we kept the tradition of having the first one up make breakfast. I added that the last one up had to clean the bathroom that night and Soda and Ponyboy traded that chore almost daily. I made dinner most nights, but I let Darry cook once or twice a week and occasionally we let Soda cook. Bleh. Choking down his unique concoctions was difficult to say the least. Darry was actually a pretty good cook. He made really good fried chicken.

We rotated doing the laundry and ironing. I think everyone in the house was suddenly self-conscious of their unmentionables but somehow, we all managed. Since the bathroom was at least spot cleaned every day and we each took care of our own rooms, it wasn't too hard to keep the living room, dining room, and kitchen clean.

Things were good. Compared to last fall, my life was a fairytale, and I knew it. But I wasn't prepared for how lonely I was. I mean, I was hardly ever alone. There were usually at least five or six people in the house, but even though things were good, I still felt separated. I was closer to Darry than I'd ever been, but I'd never felt so far apart.

It was bugging me more than usual one late evening in February. The boys were at the movies and I was cleaning the living room when Darry walked in.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

I hadn't realized I was emoting so strongly. I took a deep breath and tried to reign everything back in. "Nothing," I lied while I dusted the lamp shade.

"Maggie, look at me," his voice was firm. Darry rarely gave me a direct order. I froze and turned to face him, focusing on the buttons on his shirt. "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing," I said quickly. "I'll be fine." He didn't budge and finally, I couldn't take it any more. "I just didn't realize it would be this hard," words began spewing out of my mouth before I could stop them. "I just don't feel married. I'm tied down, but not married."

"You don't want to be tied down?" He was confused.

"No, that's not what I mean," I shook my head. "I mean that I want both." I finally managed to look up at him and suddenly, his eyes widened in surprise.

That moment felt like an eternity because Darry had finally realized that I was in love with him. The feelings I'd managed to hide for so many years were suddenly so apparent that, try as I might, I couldn't pull them back. I felt like I might as well have been standing in front of a huge crowd of people without a stitch of clothing. The heat rose in my face as he stared at me.

I realized that Darry was afraid of being vulnerable. He'd had to be strong for so long, that weakening, even if it might allow something wonderful to happen, was probably terrifying. I was suddenly angry.

"You're allowed to feel, Darry," I couldn't believe I said that. "You're allowed to be human."

I was standing there, silently begging him to wrap his arms around me, hold me, kiss me, tell me everything was going to be alright but he just stood there. Maybe he was just too shocked to react, but he just stood there and watched my heart shatter into a thousand pieces.

I bolted from the room and didn't have the nerve to come out for the rest of the evening. I eventually cried myself to sleep, but I was getting used to that.


	11. Chapter 11

We didn't talk about my outburst, and I spent most of the next two weeks trying to avoid being alone with Darry. The only opportunities we really had to talk were on the way to and from work and I mostly just stared out the window, absolutely avoiding conversation. I was always grateful to get to work or home and the Friday evening two weeks later was no different. We walked into the house silently and were greeted by the aromas of Soda's cooking.

"I'm taking a shower," Darry said quietly and disappeared.

The one nice thing about Soda cooking was that I had some time to put my feet up before it got so late that all I wanted to do was go to bed. I sat down in the living room and stretched my tired muscles.

When Darry got out of the shower, Ponyboy was setting the table with a funny, half smile on his face.

Darry was automatically suspicious. "What's up?" He asked, looking at his youngest brother carefully.

"Nothin'," Ponyboy said unconvincingly. He and Soda were putting the food on the table when Steve stuck his head in the door.

"Come on, guys, let's go!"

Ponyboy grabbed his jacket and Soda's shoes before heading to the door like his life depended on it.

"Hold it," Darry stopped him. "Where you going?"

"The movies," Ponyboy said as Soda approached. Ponyboy handed him his shoes.

I panicked and by the look on Darry's face I think he did too. Finally, Darry sighed as though his brothers had sentenced him to the firing squad. "Alright," he said and they were gone in a flash.

We stood in the living room in awkward silence for a moment before we turned around and faced the dining room. We were very surprised to see a normal looking meal on the table, complete with candlelight. Soda must have lit the candles when we were talking to Ponyboy. Sneaky.

I was suddenly embarrassed and I think Darry was too.

"I think we've been set up," he said. I nodded in agreement, but couldn't think of anything to say.

We were both frozen in the living room for a moment before heading toward the dining room. Darry pulled my seat out for me and then sat down across from me. I realized I was still in my diner uniform and wished I'd taken the time to change.

"This is sweet," I managed as I looked at the table. Chicken and noodles with plain old white mashed potatoes. Nothing was blue, purple, or orange and the only thing that was green were the peas.

Darry must have heard the surprise in my voice. "I should have known," he shook his head.

"Known what?" I asked. Neither of us had started filling our plates.

"I was just talking to Soda the other night," Darry said with a shrug. "I should have known he'd try to fix things."

"Fix things?" I played dumb. Besides, I thought the boys thought that things were going pretty well. My life was a lot better than it had been before Christmas, and Ponyboy was starting to act more like his old self.

Darry leaned forward slightly. "Between us," he said as if I didn't know.

Any idiot would have known what he meant. Soda wouldn't have lit the candles or kept the mashed potatoes from being green if this were any old dinner.

"Like they're trying to make us fall in love?" I was going to ask if they were trying to make him fall in love with me, but I was too much of a chicken.

Darry was too much of a gentleman to comment on that, or maybe he was too chicken himself. "Maybe," Darry nodded. "I've been thinking about it a lot lately, and when I talked to Soda, he reminded me of something my dad said a long time ago."

"What's that?" I asked. Mr. Curtis had been a smart man.

He looked a little embarrassed, but he took a deep breath. "I was probably about Pony's age when we asked dad how long he and mom had been married," he smiled at the memory. "He said they'd been married seventeen years and then he explained something that didn't make much sense at the time. It hasn't really made much sense until recently, actually."

"What'd he say?" I wondered aloud.

"He said, 'Boys, love isn't an emotion, not in the long run." I was taken back by that, but Darry continued. "He said, 'If you're going to love someone, day in day out, for seventeen years and hopefully a lot longer than that, then you have to choose to love them every day. You love them because of their good points and in spite of their faults. You just choose to."

I thought about it for a moment and I decided that wasn't crazy after all. My parents had probably been in love at one point but now they just coexist. They'd stopped deciding to love one another somewhere along the way. Johnny's parents too. Darry's parents had managed to be in love until they day they died and they were probably still in love wherever they were now.

I tried to apply that logic to our situation. "So you're just going to decide to fall in love with me?" I asked, feeling silly as I did.

"I think I already am," his voice was quiet and my eyes flew to his in surprise. "Or I would be if I let myself." I was reminded of my cruel words a few weeks ago as his eyes fell and he studied the table. "And I want to be. I just didn't know where to start.

It wasn't the most romantic thing I'd ever imagined, but it was better because it was real. I thought about it, and it made sense. It might take time, but if Darry could choose to love me, maybe we could have a real marriage. Maybe even a good one.

Hope made me bold and I reached across the table for his hand. "You just have to let me in," I told him. "Talk to me, not just about the bills and chores." He was still studying the table so I hunched my shoulders to catch his eyes and held them. "Share your worries, your fears," I thought for a moment. "The good stuff too." He was silent and I thought maybe I was pressuring him. "Not all at once," I said quickly. "Just make an effort."

We sat there for more than a minute and as I watched him, I realized that the candlelight was reflecting the unshed tears in his vivid blue-green eyes. It suddenly occurred to me that Darry was barely holding himself together and when he finally spoke, his voice was shaky. "I've just had to keep everything bottled up, you know?" He brought the hand I wasn't holding to his chest.

"You don't have to anymore," I said quietly. "You've been there for everyone else. Let us be there for you." I hesitated before adding, "Let me be there for you."

It took him a moment and a slow, shaky exhale to regain control and I was afraid we were back to square one. But I studied him and I could have sworn that his face was softer, younger than it had been a few moments ago. Maybe it was my imagination, but he actually almost looked his age.

He smiled and my insides melted a little. "You know, you really are something, Margaret Olivia," he paused for just a moment, a slight smile playing on his lips, "Curtis." And I believed him.

The night was magical, but I still didn't allow my feelings to run completely wild. We managed to talk all the way through dinner and it was nice to be the center of Darry's attention and not because I was fixing dinner or handing over my paycheck. He would look at me the way he used to before all of this mess, but a little more tenderly. It really felt like the beginning of something amazing even though we were just sitting at home in the dining room.

After dinner, which actually wasn't half bad, neither of us was ready for the magic to end. A year ago, I would've suggested going to the park, but now we all avoided it like the plague. Instead, we just walked around the block, the early spring air biting our noses. We hadn't gone very far when Darry wrapped his hand around mine, causing little thrills to run up my spine. I almost automatically sank into his side, but I stopped myself just in time. Instead, I just smiled up at him.

"I've had a wonderful time," I said.

"Me too," Darry agreed.

We headed up the walk toward the porch, our steps slowing as we reached the front door. I thought we were just going to go inside, but Darry turned to me head on. He didn't say anything but I felt the buzz of our night hum it's way across my skin and my heart rate accelerated dramatically as he looked down at me. He reached out and touched my arms right below the shoulders, pulling me toward him slightly, and I realized that Darry was going to kiss me. For real.

And he did, softly, almost hesitantly at first, but when I responded favorably, he was suddenly kissing me like his life depended on it. It was hot, heavy, and delicious. My heart began singing, my blood rushed through my veins like electricity, and my stomach did little cartwheels of joy. Standing on the porch that night, with the spring wind brushing across my cheek, I suddenly felt alive for the first time in my life and I knew that my life had finally really begun.


	12. Epilogue

We were cleaning up the kitchen when the boys came home and they headed straight in for some chocolate milk. I realized we wouldn't have enough to last the weekend so I added it to my mental shopping list.

"How was the movie?" Darry asked.

"Good," Ponyboy said. He was grinning at us like the Chesher Cat. "How was your evening?"

Soda popped him lightly on the back of his head. "None of your business," he said as he walked toward the living room. As he passed me, he dipped his head and whispered in my ear. "You're glowing, Mags."

I felt myself blush from my neck to the roots of my hair and I quickly turned back to the sink, hoping no one noticed. If they did, they didn't say anything.

And so my life started that night, and it was rarely boring afterward. I didn't move into Darry's room right away, but by the end of the summer, the spare room was the spare room again. We had good times and bad times, like any family, but we'd promised for better or for worse, and we kept that promise.

The worst night of all of our lives was the night Soda announced he'd been drafted. Everyone was there, us, Steve, Two-Bit, Evie, and Cathy, Ponyboy's girlfriend, and we stared at him in horror. I was terrified for him; Soda's good in a fight, but he was more of a lover than a fighter. I'd thought Darry was going to throw up and Ponyboy broke down and bawled.

But I should have known that the boys wouldn't let him go alone, and the next morning, Steve and Two-Bit went downtown and enlisted.

As it turned out, Soda's medical examination revealed a heart murmur none of us had known he had and he was sent back to us before he ever saw basic training, let alone combat. We were so thankful that he was home, but he struggled for a long time with the fact that his friends were fighting because of him without him.

Steve's dad couldn't take it and by the time Steve was back, his dad was in a constant drunken stupor. Steve didn't seem to mind. He somehow managed to be the same old Steve and be very different at the same time. Two-Bit had said he'd always be fine as long as he had something to focus his anger on, and it had been pretty easy for him to shift his focus from the socs to the gooks.

But somehow, Steve had managed to leave most of his anger in Vietnam and aside from being jumpy and a little quieter and calmer, he was still Steve.

He even fought tooth and nail against all the bureaucracy and red tape when he found out his anger wasn't all he'd left over there. Three years after they'd been home, Steve found out he had a son and the boy's mother had been killed. Steve managed to get Lanh over here, and Evie surprised everyone by marrying him and having three more. Steve ended up saving so much of his war earnings that before too long, he was able to buy the DX and pay punks that reminded him of himself to work there.

Two-bit was different, but it wasn't all bad. When we'd heard he'd taken a to the side, we were just happy he was alive. He still drank, but he actually got an honest job. He tended bar at a slightly seedy place, lived in the apartment above it, and was famous for stomping out trouble before it started. He'd always had a tough reputation, but now he had something else. Respect.

It took him a long time to settle down, he continued to chase blondes well into his forties before he met Linda, a fiery woman who could keep up with his wit and his energy, and wasn't afraid of his four child-support payments.

Soda was lost for a while, even after the boys came home. Before too long though, he found something that calmed him down and fortunately it wasn't cigarettes, beer, or worse. Soda started hanging around rodeos more than ever and got a job taking care of the horses before he started riding again himself. Like the old days, he spent as much time as he could with the horses and just like old times, Steve spent as much time as a family man could out there with him. He was really good and it wasn't long before Soda was beating local and then state records.

He was almost thirty before he met Whitney, but they married after their third date just because she could out dance him. They ended up with three kids, Brooklyn Dallas, Shaynne Michael, and Curtis Curtis. I begged him not to name is son Curtis Curtis Curtis, but he just grinned and said a funny name made would make his son strong.

Ponyboy graduated with honors and had managed to keep his nose fairly clean, even when Angela Shepherd had the hots for him. He had his choice of several colleges, but chose to stay pretty close by going to Oklahoma State. He got the contracts for his first book, the essay he'd written his freshman year, on the day he graduated and we knew that even if he stayed in Tulsa for the rest of his life, he would go places.

He'd dated Cathy, a sweet girl from a huge family, through most of his junior and senior years, but they'd called it quits when he went off to college and the winter break of his sophomore year, he brought Emily home. She was sweet with dark hair and dark eyes, and was really quiet. I wondered if he liked her just because she reminded him of Johnny, but I realized it was more than a passing fancy when they headed to the Grand Canyon together over the summer. After that, they never split up. They traded going to each other's homes for each school break, and when we met her parents at their graduation, no one was surprised when there was a ring on her finger the next day.

Fortunately, they settled in Tulsa, and he started teaching at the middle school. His next book was published right after the wedding. Emily had no trouble getting a job as a part-time nurse and by the time Johnna Elizabeth and Sebastian Patrick came along, they'd carved out a nice little life for themselves.

And us? Well, when Ponyboy headed off to college, we all convinced Darry to apply too. Sure, it was a little late, but no one worried about that sort of thing by then. He said he'd go if I did. He graduated from the local community college with a degree in business management, and I managed to get through a few secretarial classes even though our second child was causing terrible bouts of morning sickness.

Darry had never fancied the idea of just sitting behind a desk so he didn't try. He easily got a job as a production supervisor at a local factory, making pretty good money and eventually, the company helped Darry get his masters degree. It took seven years, but once he finished, he was able to get promoted to operations manager. When asked why he was so good at telling people what to do, he'd just smile and say, "I've had a lot of practice."

I know it wouldn't work out for all couples, but I managed to get a secretary position in the office at the factory and even though our hours were different, we got to have lunch together most days.

We ended up with a three kids, all boys. Darrel Shaynne the third, Cooper Andrew, and Hunter Garrison. They were a good mix between their dad and their uncles; strong and dreamy, practical and loving, and smart and reckless. They adored their uncles, even the adopted ones, and I knew that we'd all given our kids a better shot than we'd had.

Looking back though, I realized that our parents had tried to give us a better shot than they'd had. All four had come from really humble beginnings.

When Darrel was born, we made a shaky truce with my dad. Mom was still zoned out most of the time and I have to admit that I didn't trust my dad, so the kids were never alone with them; but they came over for birthdays, holidays, and the occasional Sunday afternoon.

We stayed in the house, mostly because leaving would have felt like saying goodbye to the memories and the ghosts left behind. We poured quite a bit of money into it over the years but we agreed it was worth it. The neighborhood slowly declined, but it was home.

Even after we had kids and Ponyboy moved out, we were never sure who was going to be on the couch when we woke up or who would stay for supper. Eventually, our house became a right of passage- once our kids were teens, someone in the neighborhood decided that kids couldn't hang out at "The Curtis' place" until they were twelve. Even after Hunter went off to college and grunge was a thing, the younger siblings of his friends were regulars. Someone in the neighborhood once said that if we ever moved out, whoever moved in would have to understand that no matter how long they were there, it'd still be "The Curtis' place."

People used to be surprised to learn that Darry never "made it out of the east side," and I know their comments bugged him. I would just remind him of how much of a difference he's made by being here and how proud I am of him. They affectionately call him the dad of the whole neighborhood- he'd even gone to the police station a few times to pick up a neighborhood kid or two. He's influenced so many lives over the years, and he's really proud of the legacy that he built so that eventually, those remarks didn't matter as much.

Somehow, all five couples managed to stay married, even Two-Bit, once he settled down. Even when there were more kids in our boys classes from broken homes than there weren't, we stuck it out. Johnna commented on that one Thanksgiving.

"Almost all of my friends have at least one broken home in their family," she said as she looked around with hauntingly familiar black eyes. "We're really lucky."

No one had argued. "It's because of your grandparents," Evie had told her. "They taught us that you don't quit when it gets hard. They didn't have much," she said as she took Steve's hand, "but they had each other and that was enough."

And it was. Things weren't perfect, we'd lost too much for that, but we were happy. Looking back, there's not much more we could have asked for.

Honestly, it didn't taken Darry very long to say "I love you" for the first time and it didn't take me very long to believe him. Now, he tells me he was in love with me from the beginning, it just went unnoticed for a while.


End file.
